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“Five Practical Steps to Recover Your Blogging Motivation”

by Ali Luke

It happens to almost every blogger at some point.  You start losing interest in your blog. You get busy, and you post less frequently. Perhaps you take a week off … and it becomes a month, and then three months.

It can be really tough to re-motivate yourself, especially if you started blogging with high hopes of a six-figure income within your first year, and you’ve been faced with the reality.  There’s often a lot of work between where you are and where you want to be.

But you know, of course, that if you give up now, you’ll never succeed.  Here’s how to get your motivation back.

Step #1: Look at Your Non-Blogging Life

Let’s face it, there’s a lot going on in your life – and you may find that some things are interfering with your blogging.  Maybe you need to drop or cut back on another commitment.  Maybe you need to improve your organisational or time management skills so the rest of your life doesn’t crowd into your blogging hours.  Or maybe you need to take care of yourself before taking care of your blog – it’s hard to focus if you’re stressed or feeling low.

Even at times when it looks really hard to fix things, find a way to take one small step forward.

Step #2: Write Down What You’ve Achieved With Your Blog

Even if you’ve only been blogging for a month, you’ve achieved a lot.
For instance:

  • You got your blog online – that’s more than many people manage!
  • You wrote at least one post, and probably quite a few more.
  • You got your first readers (they still count if they’re family and friends).
  • You probably connected with other bloggers in your niche on social media or forums.

When you only look ahead at the distance between you and your goals, it can feel like you’ve got a huge mountain to climb and you’re right at the bottom.

But when you look back at what you’ve already accomplished, you’ll see that you’ve climbed a big, steep section of that mountain already.

Step #3: Set a New, Short-Term Goal

Many bloggers have eventual goals like “quit my job and live off my blog” or “make six figures a year.” But what would you like to achieve with your blog in the next three months?
That could be:

  • Launch my first ebook.
  • Get 500 subscribers to my email list.
  • Make $100/week.

… or almost anything you can think of that’s realistic and achievable.

Step #4: Create a Plan for the Next Month

It’s tough to be motivated if you have to come up with new ideas every time you sit down to blog, or if you have no idea how your daily efforts will fit into the bigger picture.  So make a plan. Do it on paper, in a spreadsheet, with an app … whatever works for you.

You don’t have to map out every single post in detail, but do make sure you’ve got enough ideas to see you through the month – and try to write plans for some of them.

Also, look for one way to take a real step closer to your short-term goal. So, if you want to earn $100/week, pick a great affiliate product that you own and can market, or start offering consulting, or write the sales copy for your first ebook.

Remember, other bloggers have succeeded, and you can too.

Step #5: Talk to Other Bloggers

Whether it’s on Twitter, at a local event, in a Facebook group, in a forum, or even in the comments on DailyBlogTips, chatting to other bloggers can be hugely motivating.

If you’re on Twitter and need a bit of encouragement, tweet met at @aliventures. But don’t stop there: search for other people tweeting about your topic, and follow someone who has roughly the same number of followers as you. Check out their blog, and tweet them to tell them you like it (assuming you do!)

And if you’re struggling today … leave a comment below and tell us why you’re not feeling very motivated.

If you aren’t struggling, look at the comments and leave an encouraging message for someone who’s having a tough time with their blog.

source: dailyblogtips newsletter